Amazon has come under recent fire for significant amount of work-related injuries, which may are significant injuries. In Central Pennsylvania, Amazon has a deep footprint, including in Carlisle, Chambersburg, Lewisberry, and Harrisburg. I have represented many Amazon clients over the years, including distribution center workers and more recently delivery drivers. Amazon has gone through hiring spurts all over Central Pennsylvania, due to the ever increasing popularity of online retail delivery purchases. Injuries have increased due to the volume of business…
We are seeing more common work injuries in our area due to the type of economic growth happening in our area. Central Pennsylvania has witnessed a boom in warehouse and distribution center development. You can see the growth along Interstate 81 in Greencastle, Chambersburg, Shippensburg, Newville, and Carlisle. With that development comes labor intensive jobs and ultimately an increase in work-related injuries. First, let me say this. Whether you work for the actual distribution center or through a temporary agency…
A Chambersburg injured worker recently received a settlement of $110,000 for a hand injury. Her injury was sustained while working at a manufacturer in Chambersburg. I was able to secure the settlement after winning her wage loss benefits. I had an injured worker who worked for a Chambersburg manufacturer. She suffered a severe hand injury when her hand got caught in a machine. Essentially, the machine guard did not function properly. My client underwent three surgeries, but eventually recovered and…
What work injury lawyer is near you in Chambersburg and Carlisle? Answer is simple. Mooney Law! Mooney Law has offices in downtown Chambersburg and Carlisle to make it convenient for our clients in the Chambersburg and Carlisle areas. Live half way between Chambersburg and Carlisle? We have you covered. We also have an office in downtown Shippensburg too. The purpose of this post is to let our Chambersburg and Carlisle clients know they can meet with me, a local attorney…
The economic boom in the Chambersburg area is continuing. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, the Franklin County area has seen double the amount of job growth as the rest of Pennsylvania. Local jobs grew 2.3 percent during the past year, compared to 1.2 percent across the state, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.The main drivers of local job growth have been professional and business services (up 300 jobs from July 2017 to July…
Forklift accidents can certainly cause serious injuries for people working in warehouses throughout Central Pennsylvania. Looking up and down Interstate 81 from Greencastle to Chambersburg to Carlisle and north, warehouses and distribution centers blanket the landscape. They produce jobs, which is a big reason that Central Pennsylvania can boast a low unemployment rate. The growth of warehousing along Interstate 81 continues. However, warehouses also bring more work injuries to a community. You can read about common warehouse injuries right…
Growth in warehouse development and subsequent jobs that follow are expected to continue to grow in the Chambersburg, Shippensburg, and Carlisle areas of South Central Pennsylvania, in 2018. It is kind of obvious given the continued development underway. Looking at Shippensburg, you can see warehouse development currently underway off Interstate 81 Exit 24. There is expected to be an additional warehouse to be built after the one behind the new Sheetz Store is completed. The warehouses being developed off Exit…
We have seen the various reports from time to time on the overall impact of understaffing at Pennsylvania Nursing Homes. In this report of 18 of Pennsylvania's most understaffed nursing care facilities, ten of the eighteen are owned and operated by Manor Care, and three of the 18 are right here in the mid-state, in Chambersburg, Carlisle, and New Bloomfield in Perry County. These reports generally focus around the sub-standard care is causes to the patients who reside or are being cared…
Governor Tom Wolf announced that Pennsylvania Workers Compensation rates improved, yet again. Pennsylvania fell from 17th in down to 26th in workers compensation insurance costs for businesses. That is a pretty big jump and shows that Pennsylvania is more attractive to business and has a friendly business environment. In fact, check out how many insurance carriers offer workers compensation coverage in Pennsylvania. "More than 325 companies offer workers' compensation insurance coverage in Pennsylvania," said Insurance Commissioner Teresa Miller, in a…
One thing I have learned through my years of dedicating my practice to representing injured workers is the fact we have a strong labor work ethic in Pennsylvania. I see it everyday.
The misnomer out there is that injured workers want to just sit on workers compensation benefits. That is just not accurate. Many injured workers that I represent want to get back to work quickly, even before they are healed. Many are losing precious dollars each week, many are long time employees of companies they enjoy working for, and others feel worthless just sitting at home, while they heal from their work injuries. These are not people trying to live off a benefit they deserve. These folks do not go to work asking to be injured.
Robust Economy in Central Pennsylvania
In Central Pennsylvania, we have a robust economy. Cumberland County is expected to become the fastest growing county in the Commonwealth. From a strong housing market, to a positive tax environment, to a robust work ethic, the Carlisle, Mechanicsburg, Silver Spring Township, Hampden Township areas, and even south to Shippensburg, are bustling with economic development. Even across the county border to Franklin County, just look at the growth in Chambersburg. Distribution Centers and manufacturing are popping up all along Interstate 81 corridor. Shippensburg is set to see more growth off Interstate 81, Exit 24. One thing these companies have cited is a strong work ethic. That is something to be proud of. Companies do not locate to areas where they do not believe they can gain a strong work force.
So on this Labor Day, we should take pride in our communities that we live in and be thankful we are seeing growth and advancement, not decay and depreciation. Pennsylvania is not a growing state, population wise, but the area we live in, well, the story is quite different. Take pride in our communities and who we are as Central Pennsylvanians. We work well, we work hard, and we produce.
Treating injured employees with respect
Hopefully, as we continue to see companies locate into Cumberland, Franklin, and Adams counties, we will see companies become good stewards. Part of that is treating employees with respect and taking care of them when they are hurt. Work injuries happen. It is a fact. Many people get hurt working around the home. But, at work, there is heavy lifting, there are fork lift accidents, there is such a thing as repetitive stress and trauma, there are slip and falls, there are certified nursing assistant who get injured helping patients, and there are auto accidents. The key is how we respond to such injuries. Companies need to do a better job at restructuring or revising processes to avoid work injuries. They need to constantly evaluate work injuries and make changes to head off injuries before they occur. They need to put employee safety as a core company value. Without employees, companies do not exist. Without a healthy work force, profits dwindle. It’s called good stewardship and it needs to become a core principle. Companies need to stop with the suspicions, stop the blaming, and stop putting up impediments to treatment for injuries, and instead, focus on getting injured workers well and compensating them fairly for life altering injuries. (more…)
